Architecture Practice Operations Lead

Come join us and make a difference in the world! Discover more at www.necsws.com. Please be aware this role can be hybrid office based or remote subject to location.

We are seeking an Architecture Operations Manager to drive operational excellence within our Architecture & Design practice. Reporting to the Architecture Practice Manager, you will join a diverse architecture team comprising enterprise, security, and technical solution architecture specialists. This pivotal role ensures portfolio transparency, delivery coordination, and effective engagement with the wider business, while championing innovation and continuous improvement aligned with NEC SWS values: Involved, Innovative, Inspiring, Improve.

The Architecture Operations Manager plays a critical role in enabling the Architecture & Design practice to deliver high-quality outcomes efficiently and consistently. This role focuses on operational leadership, workload management, and stakeholder engagement, ensuring that architecture delivery is well-coordinated, transparent, and aligned with organisational priorities. Working collaboratively is essential to understand work requests from the business, allocate resources effectively, and feed insights into workforce planning and capability development.

Key responsibilities of the role are:

• Portfolio Leadership & Delivery
  • Maintain and manage the Architecture Workload Portfolio, ensuring clarity, prioritisation, and transparency of all work items.
  • Drive end-to-end delivery orchestration, collaborating with architects, engineers, and project managers to move initiatives from investigation through design to implementation.
  • Champion proactive continuous prioritisation and resource allocation to align skills with business needs and strategic priorities.
• Governance & Quality Assurance
  • Execute architecture governance processes, ensuring compliance with NEC SWS standards.
  • Attend the Project Change Approval Board (PCAB) to understand new work requests ensuring appropriate resource allocation of architecture team members to project team and manage architecture-only work items.
  • Promote accountability and auditability by maintaining accurate records of decisions, actions, and outcomes.
• Stakeholder Engagement
  • Act as a trusted partner to internal and external stakeholders, building strong relationships to clarify scope, resolve issues, and accelerate progress.
  • Handle escalations with confidence and agility, safeguarding service continuity and customer satisfaction.
• Team Enablement & Knowledge Management
  • Foster a culture of continuous learning through induction programmes, training sessions, and knowledge-sharing initiatives.
  • C curate and maintain design artefacts and knowledge repositories to ensure accuracy and accessibility.
• Innovation & Continuous Improvement
  • Champion innovative approaches, exploring new tools and technologies to enhance productivity and modernise architecture practices.
  • Lead process improvement initiatives to streamline workflows and improve efficiency and quality.
• Resource & Time Management
  • Ensure transparent time and effort reporting to support effective planning and accountability.
  • Optimise team capacity by rebalancing assignments to maximise utilisation and maintain delivery momentum.
• Team Leadership & Engagement
  • Inspire and involve the team through regular catch-ups, practice calls, and collaborative sessions.
  • Organise and support team events to reinforce NEC SWS values and create an inclusive, motivating environment.
  • Provide line management for team members supporting their individual personal development and general wellbeing.

Qualifications

Essential

• Strong leadership and stakeholder management skills.
• Excellent organisational and prioritisation abilities.
• Deep understanding of architecture governance and delivery processes.
• Ability to inspire and develop high-performing teams.
• Commitment to innovation and continuous improvement.

Desirable

• Formal project or programme management qualifications: Prince2, PMP, MSP.
• Experience managing projects involving the design and implementation of enterprise and security architecture solutions.
• Experience managing projects involving designing and delivering solutions within the UK Government domain.
• Familiarity with compliance & security standards across the enterprise IT landscape such as ISO27001 and NCSC Cyber Essentials.
• Familiarity with ISO20000 and ITIL service management principles & tools.

Additional Information

We pride ourselves in offering an excellent benefits package, including an above average pension scheme. When you join the team at NEC Software Solutions, you are provided with the following:

• Private Medical Cover funded by NEC for Employees (with the option to add family members at an additional cost).
• 25 days paid holiday with the option to buy/sell (FTE).
• 4 x basic salary life assurance cover funded by NEC (with the option to increase cover at an additional cost).
• A Group Pension Plan with fantastic employer contributions up to a maximum of 8.5%.
• A selection of flexible benefits to suit your individual needs.
• All colleagues get free access to LinkedIn Learning. Over 15000 courses covering a huge breadth of subjects.

Other Information

Candidates must be able to demonstrate a pre-existing right to work and travel within the UK. Documentary evidence will be required. All offers are subject to satisfactory vetting, references and occupational health checks. Depending on the nature of the role a Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) check may also be required. This position requires you to either currently have national security vetting clearance at the Security Check (SC) level or higher, Non-Police Personnel Vetting (NPPV) Level 3, or the ability to gain Enhanced Security Clearance in addition to the Baseline Personnel Security Standard.

NEC Software Solutions is an equal opportunities employer, welcoming applications from all communities. If you require any reasonable adjustments or have specific accessibility needs during the recruitment or interview process, please feel free to share these with us. We are committed to ensuring an inclusive and accommodating experience for all candidates.

Who We Are:

We’re NEC Software Solutions (part of global tech giant NEC Corporation). While you read this ad, our software is helping to dispatch ambulances, support families, keep trains on the move, locate missing people and even test the hearing of newborn babies. Working with us, you’ll be helping our 3,000+ employees push the boundaries of what’s possible and support amazing public services. We work with governments, hospitals, police forces, housing providers, local authorities and more. We help them pay financial support faster, speed up treatments for patients and respond to emergencies in the right way. The more we do, the more our customers can do for others. And together, we make a world of difference. We’d love your help. And we’ll support you all the way.